Once an annulment is complete, it is as though the marriage never occurred. After an annulment, individual parties can legally and truthfully claim to have never been married.

Why Get an Annulment?

If the marriage has lasted less than six months — In New York, other than for reasons of cruel and inhuman treatment, individuals cannot get divorced if their marriage is less than six months old. However, they may be able to get an annulment in certain circumstances.

If one individual is still technically married — If one spouse is still married to another person but claimed to be divorced, the latest marriage can be annulled.

If the marriage was based on fraud — If one individual deceived the other into getting married (by falsely claiming to want kids, for example), an annulment may be sought.

For religious reasons — In certain religions, divorce is not an option for couples looking to end their marriages. A civil annulment, if appropriate, may be a viable alternative when a couple cannot get a divorce for religious reasons.